Ontario COVID-19 cases dip below 500 for second straight day
Ontario’s daily COVID-19 case count has dipped below the 500 mark for the second day in a row.
Health officials logged 411 new infections on Wednesday, as well as 33 deaths related to the novel coronavirus.
The Ministry of Health has stated that of the 33 new deaths reported, 11 actually occurred in either April or May.
Before Tuesday, the last time the case count was this low was on Sept. 26, 2020, when 435 COVID-19 cases were reported.
Wednesday also marks the 10th day in a row in which Ontario’s daily case count has been below 1,000.
The seven-day rolling average of daily reported COVID-19 cases continues to decline and now stands at about 657 down from 978 a week ago.
There are 571 people being treated for the novel coronavirus in Ontario hospitals. At least 466 of those patients are in intensive care.
With 30,456 tests processed in the last 24-hour period, the Ministry of Health says the province’s positivity rate now stands at 2.0 per cent. The is the lowest reported positivity rate since February.
The decline in COVID-19 cases over the past week resulted in an earlier reopening for Ontario, with the government announcing Monday that the province would move into Step 1 three days earlier.
WHERE ARE THE COVID-19 CASES?
The majority of cases are found in Toronto (97), Peel Region (72), Waterloo (35) and York Region (26).
According to the province’s epidemiology report, 902 of the B.1.1.7. variant were identified in lab-positive tests in the previous 24-hours. These new cases bring the total number of B.1.1.7. variants in Ontario to 134,608.
The province also identified an additional 64 cases of the P.1. variant.
Ontario is not publicly reporting cases of the B.1.617 variant originally found in India.
MORE THAN 1.2 MILLION PEOPLE FULLY VACCINATED
The province administered just over 177,506 vaccine doses in the last 24-hour period.
In total, over 10.4 million vaccine doses have made it into the arms of Ontarians. Just over 1.2 million people have received two shots and are considered fully vaccinated.
Background
The numbers used in this story are found in the Ontario Ministry of Health's COVID-19 Daily Epidemiologic Summary. The number of cases for any city or region may differ slightly from what is reported by the province, because local units report figures at different times.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
'We have laws': Premier Smith says police action justified in Calgary
The actions, including the decision to use non-lethal force, to disperse pro-Palestinian protesters from the University of Calgary campus were justified, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Friday.